A Wolf Plus One
by DrRockyl
Summary: Grayson x Surly; set after the movie. Buddy moves away and Surly is left to his own devices, refusing to help of Liberty Park. Grayson pops up one night without expectation. Edited as of 9/28/14 to makes things easier to read...
1. Chapter 1

_**Enjoy - a Surly x Grayson fanfic  
>* Edited: 928/14 to make things clearer**_

**A Wolf + One**

The glare of city lights washed across the landscape below. Tall buildings stood and a small squirrel shivered at the rancorous automobiles charging beneath him. Soft mist floated easily, applying light moisture to his purple fur. He remembered how others used to tease him for the color... including Andie. He sighed.

"Well that life... is over," he muttered. His new ambition was loneliness. Buddy had left on an adventure of his own, which was perfectly reasonable. But Surly couldn't understand why he felt so... abandoned. From everyone. Andie. Buddy. Grayson. Even the Bruisers. Hell, there was no one to talk to, to maul over him, and... something left a hole in him. _It's not Buddy_, he realized. Some_one_ was missing... he couldn't put a finger on who.

After the great raid of the nut shop, scavenging for food became harder. They couldn't steal all the nuts, of course. There was only so much they could take before the place was shut down completely and turned to a vintage store. Hunting for food, Buddy and Surly had been successful in their findings, but it wouldn't last for all winter. Then Buddy decided to go away.

The air was harsh and made Surly bristle. The cold hung like an extra layer across his back. And their occasional visits with Grayson and Andie became infrequent as they both had to keep to the safety of the park. To make matters worst, the city was cruel and full of abusive, angry people. It didn't help that most of Oakton was increasingly homeless. But Surly could relate.

Now it'd been a month and Surly found himself going down a fast spiral of dread for the upcoming winter. Any moment now and it'd be raining... then snowing. He'd have to fend for himself, alone. Although Andie begged him to accept some food from the park, Surly calmly refused. _I just want to pay my dues and be done with it_, he thought bitterly. In his heart of hearts, he wanted to be a part of something. But not Liberty Park. He sighed. A part of him was still angry and frustrated; being governed by leaders just wasn't his way.

Surly tried to go to sleep but the last lines of sunlight buzzed across the horizon in the distance. His eyes gleamed, remembering the nut shop raid. Andie was incredible. Grayson was... diabolical. He chuckled to himself.

He felt his mind fill with the oxygen of the prevailing night. The sun wouldn't go down... _why can't it just go down and sink? _Surly sighed; his vigil would last until midnight. That's how he liked it.

A shard of moonlight dashed onto the building's roof top. Drool was accumulating... harsh snores could be heard from the purple squirrel. Grayson's ears flicked... someone was here. His heart skipped a beat.

"Not the rats...," he whimpered to himself. He knew it was foolish, even for him. His fur prickled just thinking about them. But he was here for something. His thoughts wouldn't stop... a hot-red pit of adrenaline in his stomach sent him in a jittering frenzy across the streets of Oakton. For once he didn't care. His parkour was excellent as he yipped and laughed at himself across the buildings.

Something told him to race across. His energy was up and his thoughts erratic. Grayson couldn't help but wonder. What was this new found freedom? He tried to calm himself, nestling in the soft sanctuary of a flower bed.

"Golly," he clacked his tongue, "Did I drink something or _what_?!" he shouted. He sprang, grappling for the next building's ledge. He collided unsteadily into a soft, furry figure.

"What th-" Surly grumbled; a brute force slammed into him and both tumbled until they came to a hard stop at a pipe. He could see only a shadow and he arched his back angrily, throwing off the attacker.

"H-Hey... I'm warning you!" Surly hissed.

"Wha-?" a voice squeaked. Surly slammed into the shadow and the two wrestled. Surly's muscles tensed with effort to subdue the shadow. Strong, yet gentle paws seized his arms, but Surly unsheathed his sharp hind claws to scratch at his belly.

"S-Surly!" Grayson yelped, feeling claws dig into his stomach. Grayson jumped off and was quickly kicked to the ground. The purple squirrel "caged" him, and slammed against his collarbone.

"How do you know my name?! Who sent you!" he growled. Grayson struggled, the urge to fight growing stronger, but knew he couldn't harm Surly... Grayson owed him too much.

"It's me! Grayson! Don't you _remember?_!"

"Wh... what? Gr-rayson?" he muttered. Slowly, the squirrel's defenses grew softer. Grayson sighed in relief. But two angry fists still held him down. Grayson couldn't help but feel intrigued by Surly's stubbornness... he honestly he had to admit it felt-

"What are you doing here?" Surly's voice lightened up just a tad. His amber eyes sparked with recognition. Grayson stood up and Surly's arms rested by his sides. He sighed, "God, it's so good to have a-" Surly stopped himself from hugging him and leapt easily away. For once, Grayson was quiet... observant. Surly felt his eyes sear at his back.

"Get back to your park," he said gently, yet scornfully. Surly stood on the ledge, overlooking the city.

Grayson crept quietly behind, lights hitting his eyes. He didn't mind. Seeing Surly since what felt like forever was adrenalating. Grayson placed his elbows on the ledge, looking down at the small specs on the street, wondering how'd humans would feel if they knew two squirrels were watching them. He grinned.

"Surly, come _on_, stop being so-"

"Look, Grayson, it's okay. I don't need no damn sympathy," he gestured with his paw, "I can look after _myself_," Surly retorted, walking to another side of the ledge. Grayson's eyes widened with surprise. _Woah. Okay, then_. His hands fell from his face as he gazed at Surly's quiet figure.

**Please review, critique, etc. :D I'll post another chapter soon - if you got any requests for any shorts or chapter stories, post them up and I'll consider :)**


	2. Chapter 2

_**Enjoy - I'm in the process of making a cover for this story :3**_  
><em><strong>I may edit this later (won't change much, just grammar, understanding, etc)<strong>_

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><p><strong>Delivery<strong>

A lean silhouette crept swiftly down the street. He was thin and scruffy, but he knew he'd survive. He always did. A stash was saved for the next visit to Liberty Park - which would be 6 o'clock in the morning. He restrained himself not to eat any. That's why he changed "homes" so often.

He dreaded the trip to Liberty. _Of all the animals_, Grayson had to be the one. The one he lost his temper with. The one he yelled at. Yet, still, Grayson was the only one to visit him. Seek him out. And that infuriated him most of all.

_Sure, have Andie come, but **Grayson**?_ he thought bitterly. Grayson was terrible at keeping things to himself, barely having the strength to maintain the illusion that _he_ and his team were the heroes, not Surly and Buddy. If he didn't tell the whole park what Surly did, he'd tell Andie. And Precious. And God knows who else he would tell, knowing that Grayson had slipped up a few times. Luckily, the ones who knew never retaliated and told the whole park; they simply acted as if Grayson was the hero all along. That's the version they much prefer anyways.

Grayson would put him through hell. Surly could feel it in his bones; Grayson was not done with him. Whatever he had planned, it was not good.

Surly's eyes shifted from side to side as he recalled all the events of that day. For some reason, it was a blur... maybe it was due to his rage. Or_ that's just how I work_, he figured. He dug through his brain... how did he get Grayson off his tail again? _Oh, yeah... _

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><p><em>Flashback to End of last chapter<em>

_Surly began to re-curl into the safety of a corner. Soft dribbles of rain fell and he shivered. He expected Grayson to be going away by now; he knew how much he hated the rain. Surly sighed with relief at the thought. _Now I can get some damn sleep...

_Droplets rolled off his whiskers and he sneezed; he reached for the nearby "blanket" of plastic he had already prepared for himself. But someone beat him to the punch. Two rough paws lifted the make-shift cover hesitantly. Grayson's fur was drenched in the rain, but he didn't mind. He quickly secured the plastic under Surly's weight, tucking his fluffy purple tail in. Surly's ears flattened with surprise; for a moment, he didn't know how to react. __  
><em>

_"Don't mention it," Grayson thumb flickered towards his blanketed bundle, standing charmingly upright on his back legs. His voice broke Surly's dazed confusion before he could even utter a word. _

_"No, no," Surly leapt up to his feet, throwing the blanket gently away. "Stop it," he glared at the grey squirrel. Beneath Surly's severity, a tint of gratitude hid in his ember eyes. He tried not to look soft, sensitive, or protective of Grayson at all, but that's exactly how Grayson viewed him. "You need to leave now."_

_"Surly...," he whined. "Let me stay? I have am an exemplary ally - I can help!"_

_"What do you mean, "help"?" Surly snarled. "I don't need any. It's tough enough as it is, trying to feed myself. What you gonna leave the park **for**?" Grayson's mouth opened to speak. "That was a rhetorical question," the purple squirrel snapped. _

_"I miss you and Andie does too...!," Grayson admitted and hugged him. Surly brushed him off. "Why can't I help you?! You don't have to be alone anymore... a-and I don't have to live a lie!" _

_"Grayson, I'm trying to protect ya, ok?" his rough voice growled. "I'm not good for you, the park, or anyone else." Surly muttered, "Hell, Buddy saw that coming before you or Andie ever could."_

_"Surly, please, I'm cold and I...," a garbage can fell, "I hate those rats!" he wailed. Grayson's tail bristled straight up, and he leapt onto Surly's back._

_"D-Don't leave me...!" His eyes closed tightly. Surly threw him off; the grey squirrel flipped over and dug his claws into the loose cracks of the brick. Grayson's ears flattened, a loud bang from below sending his imagination haywire._

_"Bye Grayson. I can't do this anymore." For a second, the hero's face was appalled. His arms hung limply to his sides as he watched Surly slurk away to the shadows... abandoning the plastic wrap. Grayson's tail twitched and he came back to life. He shook his head and had a determined look in his eye. He swallowed his fear._

_"F-Fine," he shrugged dumbly, "I-I can be ... lonely, too!"_

_**Lonely...**, Surly thought sadly, **Grayson, you're something else**. _

_"I will avenge my efforts! Because I...," Grayson grappled for the next words, "I never forget my friends!" he yelled the last words pathetically and raced off into the night. He skidded down ladders and balconies until he found one particularly over-hanging that hid him from the rats... _

_Grayson's breath caught in his throat at each new eerie sound... He tousled in his sleep and had terrible nightmares. If only Surly knew how horrified of the dark he was. _

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><p>Bright, orange flames skidded the sunrise, barely peaking over the world. Cars still buzzed by and droplets of water visibly fell softly to the ground. All was quiet and drowsy. Lazy snores came from a small tree as Surly dreamed of the night before. Of how it could have turned out. It made him long for Grayson's presence again, just to say how sorry he was.<p>

A flick of water dropped on his nose and he twitched. The purple squirrel yawned, stretching his tired tail. He slowly shook himself and hung closely to the tree bark.

_Already?_ he moaned internally. _Come on..._, he whined in his head. As fanciful as his dreams were the night before, Surly quickly forced himself to pretend like he never had them. He was embarrassed, but didn't want to ruin the peaceful morning with angry banter in his thoughts. Surly's ears flickered as he observed the sky. The squirrel skidded down the tree, dreading the trip to Liberty Park. He knew a round of lectures were to come about from Andie, and possibly the Bruisers, about his treatment of Grayson last night. And the hero would be the new victim.

Surly groaned with annoyance.

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><p><strong>Hope you enjoyed; please reviewcritique/etc. I'm taking up requests and will consider all of them  
>Next chapter will be coming up within a few days<strong>

**I will explain why Buddy left soon :)**


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